Safety medicine-spoon



H. TOLER. SAFETY MEDICINE SPOON. APPLICATION FILED MAY 24, |920.

1,390,475. f Pandsept. 13,1921.

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` @Momma sA-rm 'MEDICINE-ewa Appuc'auonmea Maya/1, 1920.# serial-,Naissance Be it known that I, 1H' UBERiEToLnn, a Vciti- Zen vof the United States,'residing`at VSweetwater, in the county of Nolan and State of Texas,` have invented new :and useful Im-N provements in. Safety Medicine-Spoons, of

which the following is a specication.

This invention relates to improvements in medicine spoonsand 'more particularly to a type of the same adapted' for thepu-rposerof administering medicine. f Y

The primaryobjectof theinvention is ,to provide for a comparatively simple and inexpensive construction of the character mentioned, andonelprovided with a means whereby the spoonim'a-yfbe lcarried forfpa distance,as from-a table or cabinet V'1n a room to the bed of a'patient, after the same has been filled, orf partly? lled,.in safety,

and without possible lossof the contents`,vjo1f v quently, reducing the chance of loss or spill-` ing of the` medicine. to a minimum.

A further object of the invention is to provide for a spoon of the type specified, and one which is so constructed as to be readily cleansed, disinfected, and `kept in a sanitary condition at all times.

With the foregoing and other objects, in view, the invention resides in the certain novel construction as will be hereinafter more fully described, set forth in the appended-claims, and illustrated in the accompanying drawing, in which Figure 1 is a side elevation,

Fig. 2 is a top plan, and

Fig. 3 is a vertical longitudinal section on the line 3 3 of Fig. 2.

Referring to the drawing, in .which similar characters of reference designate corresponding parts in the several views thereof, the numeral 10 indicates the bowl portion of the spoon and 11 the handle portion thereof, the bowl being of any desired size Speelman-gf Latas-:aait #patented-slept. 13,1921.

v@shapegaisjmiay; correspond withl either ofthe usual yforms of common ltea-spoons, dessert-spoons vor table-spoons x Conforming tothe shape ofthe bowl '10 is a substantially flat'-covergplate 12 --arranged vto snuglycontact. theedge of the bowlin ,a 'manner to preclude all possible es-fy cape of eventhe thinnest of liquids from the latter when in closed position.; The material, of which the spoon is made isrecessed, to provide a shoulderas at .13, at the junction of the bowl 10 with'the handle portion 11, so that-'fthe horizontal wall of the shoulder 'f is'ocontinuo'us-with the -top edge of thebowl and provides for' a supporting surfacey for the cover-'plate .12- to further prevent the yescape vof anyy ofthe liquid contents at .this point.

I' A two-part. hinge Ais .provided for-pivotally mountingthe'cover plate 12 in `position on the bowlr10,-and one part of this hinge, as at I14C, is .permanently :secured on the adjacent handle portion immediately in rear of the recess 13, whilethe other portion of the hinge, as at 15, is permanently secured to the cover plate 12 and has its connecting portion projecting rearwardly of the latter and is secured in engagement with the portion 14 by ymeans of a removable pin or pintle 16.

An operatinghandle 17 is provided for actuating the cover plate 12 to and from closed position, and the same s provided with a depending leg portion 18 ,having a foot portion 19 which is secured permanently to the cover plate 12 immediately in advance of the hinge' portion 15. The handle 17 extends rearwardly from its point of connection with the cover plate 12 1n alinement with respect to the handle portion 11 of the spoon, and spaced above the latter for a desired distance. for the proper opening .and closing of the cover plate 12.

For maintaining the cover plate- 12 in normally closed position and firmly in contact withthe top edge of the bowl 10, a coiled spring 2O is positioned between the khandle portion 11, of the spoon, and the against the underside of the vhandle 17 by means of oppositely depending ears or lugsl 21 formed with the'latter. In the use or the spoon-thus provided, and especially Jfor the dosing of infants vor weak and bed-ridden persons, medicine is placedvin the bowl 10, and the cover plate 12 closed thereover, so that the spoon may be transported from a table or' medicine* cabinet in the sickroom to the patient without spilling the contents. Without undue disturbance Voir the patient, or even' should the patient be sleeping or in a comatoseor semi-comatose state, the spoon is inserted between the' lips, or betweenthej teeth and the handle 11 and the handle 17 are then pressed together, against the tension of the coiled spring'20, andthe medicine allowed VVtofpass into'the mouthor-the patient. -In this rusev and opera-tion of the spoon', the

opening movementA of the bowl and the cover plate 12 tends to force the jaws of Y the patient apart and hold thesame in' po# sition to assure of theV entirey dose of inedi-V eineA being discharged well intov the mouth v of the patient.

For the proper' cleansing and disinfect'- ing of the spoon', the pin or pintle 16 may' be removedV to allow the separation of the hinge members 14.- and 15, one froml the other, and, consequently, the removal or the cover plate 12 and its handle 1'rro`in the bowl 10 and its handle portion lll-,whereby thepparts may be thoroughly washed and Hdried for ,subsequentv use.

with a bowl portion and a handleportion I therefor, of a snugly ittingcover plate'nor- Inally closing said bowl 'portion and having' an operating handle overlying the handle portion of the spoon','a shoulder formed at the juncture of the bowl portion andv thehandle portion thereof and having its horif zontal wall continuoustwith the top edgefof the -bowlportion to provide a supporting surface for thejcover plate yat this point, a removable pin hingedly securing 'said' vcover plate and its operating handle ,in po@v a coiledv spring disposed bfesition, and tween the operating' handle of said cover plate and the' handle portion of the spoon for holding theV former in` normally closed position on the latter.V`

In testimony whereof I aiiixmy' signature.

HUBERT TOLER. 

